from Con Thien to Gio Linh, a distance of 10.6 km. The engineers were protected by a task force consisting of the 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, an AMTRAC (LVT-5) platoon, a platoon of M42 Dusters from the 1st Battalion, 44th Artillery Regiment and some Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) units. By 19 April, despite harassment from PAVN mines, small arms, recoilless rifle, mortar and artillery fire the strip was half-completed. In order to protect Route 561, the supply line to Con Thien from Route 9, the Marines had established two outposts: Charlie 2 was located 3 km southeast of Con Thien and contained artillery and infantry positions, while Charlie 2A (nicknamed the Washout) was on low-lying ground overlooking a bridge. Attack on Con Thien At 03:00 on 8 May some 300 rounds of mortar and artillery fire hit the base, while PAVN sappers with Bangalore torpedoes breached the perimeter wire. At 04:00 two battalions of the PAVN 812th Regiment armed with flamethrowers overran the Special Forces base. At the time of the attack the base was defended by Special Forces Detachment A-110, ARVN Special Forces, CIDG and Seabees. A small command element with A and D Companies, 1/4th Marines and several tanks from the 3rd Tank Battalion were providing security for engineers that were clearing a 200 meter wide fire zone around Leatherneck Square. The well-organized attack fell primarily on Company D's northern perimeter with fierce hand-to-hand combat. The outnumbered defenders eventually repelled the attacking forces. A relief column from Company A, 1/4th Marines was sent with an M42 Duster, 2 LVT-5s and 2 quarter ton trucks. The M42 was hit by an RPG-7 and an LVT-5 and one truck were destroyed by flamethrowers and satchel charges. By 09:00 the PAVN had withdrawn leaving 197 killed and 8 prisoners. The Marines had suffered 44 killed and 110 wounded, the CIDG had 14 killed with 2 missing in action, the Special Forces had 4 wounded and the Seabees had 5. Base commander Captain Chamberlain received the Distinguished Service Cross and purple heart for his valor and leadership in repulsing the attack. Remilitarizing the DMZ After the 8 May attack, recognizing that the PAVN were using the DMZ as a sanctuary for attacks into I Corps, Washington lifted the prohibition on US forces entering the DMZ and MACV authorized the III Marine Amphibious Force (III MAF) to conduct combat operations